Year: 2011

Book Review: The iConnected Parent

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From time to time, we like to review some of the books available for parents of college students.  There is a wealth of literature available to help parents cope with the transition to college and the changes that occur throughout the college years.  We’ve created lists of recommended reading, and there is something for everyone.  Please check out our Resources and Tools page for suggestions.

The iConnected Parent: Staying Close to Your Kids in College (and Beyond) While Letting Them Grow Up
 by Barbara K Hofer and Abigail Sullivan Moore should be required reading for any parent sending his or her child away to college. The authors perceptively hold a mirror up to allow parents to see themselves and understand why we feel the need to be so involved in and connected to our children’s lives.

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Sending Your Student the Best College Care Package Ever

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Even in the age of electronic communication, college students love to receive ”real” mail.  Perhaps the mail that college students love to receive the most are those care packages from home.  Nothing beats something put together lovingly from home, and receiving presents — even small tokens — really brightens a student’s day!

When to send a package

Care packages are appropriate at any time of the semester.  In fact, a package that is unexpected is often a double bonus.  However, care packages may be especially appreciated at particular times.

Sometime during those first couple of weeks for new students is a time when a package may be especially meaningful.  This might also be a good time to include a small item or two that the student might have forgotten to pack in the first place.  Other times when students especially appreciate a package can be those particularly stressful times of midterm and final exams, or send a package to celebrate an event, an award, a milestone or just as an unexpected surprise.  Something that might make your student smile, and think about home will be meaningful.  And if it contains food, it will be appreciated all the more!

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There’s an Upside to Sending Your Student to College

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As you drop your student off for college, and then return to your empty nest, you may be thinking mostly about how much you’ll miss them.  You may be worrying about how quiet the house will seem.  You may or may not be worried about how well they will succeed at school, –  but you’re also thinking about the hole that remains in your family.

You’ll certainly miss your student.  And, although you may not believe it as you return to your empty (or at least emptier) house, you will get used to having your student away.  What you may or may not have thought about are some of the advantages of moving your college student out of the house and away at school. Yes, they exist!

We’d like to offer a slightly light-hearted reminder that there is an upside to sending your student away to college.

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How to Make Your Parents’ Weekend Visit a Success

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Parents’ Weekend at your student’s college may be just around the corner.  This may be your first opportunity to visit your freshman at his college.  He may or may not have been home for a visit already, but whether he’s been home or not, your first visit to his new home away from home can feel like a momentous occasion.

Parents’ Weekend is a wonderful opportunity for you and your student to spend some time together.  Each school organizes the event a bit differently, but the overall purpose and format are often similar.  Read an overview of Parents’ Weekend to understand better what to expect.

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Helicopter Parents Are Big Topic

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As college students headed back to school this fall, Merriam Webster  announced that “helicopter parent” was now an entry in their dictionary. Helicopter Parents are an important topic.  Those same parents may now be dealing with the Empty Nest Syndrome.

I was privileged to be a guest this fall on Wisconsin Public Radio’s Joy Cardin show as together we explored the topics of helicopter parents and empty nests.  For those of us sending our students off to college, there’s lots of food for thought during this interview.

Listen to the Wisconsin Public Radio interview and then let us know your thoughts.  Have you just sent someone off to college?  Do you consider yourself a helicopter parent?  How are you coping with your empty nest?

Is Your College Student Getting in Their Own Way?

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There are many sources of challenges students face as they navigate their college careers, but sometimes the challenges may be of their own making.  Sometimes, students seem to undermine themselves by making assumptions or restricting their choices. These students may need help from someone to get out of their own way. As a college parent, you may be able to help your student move forward more successfully.

Most students eventually succeed in college in spite of bumps and potholes along the way.  For some students the transition may be more difficult than others, some students may struggle academically, some may have challenges socially, and others face personal difficulties.  For a lucky few, the transition goes smoothly, academics are workable and personal and social life come together.

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Saving Money on Outfitting Your College Student’s Dorm Room

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College today is expensive.  There is no way around it.  Parents and students both are working to finance the cost of college tuition and fees, piecing together financial aid through scholarships, grants and loans.  Many students, and their parents, may be dismayed to think about the additional costs of outfitting the ideal college dorm room, yet all of the advertising and publicity tells them that this is essential.

Your college student will need to make some purchases to furnish their dorm room.  Decorating that first ”home away from home” is part of the college experience.  However, there are some ways in which your student can pare down the costs of the decorating process.  Here are a few suggestions to discuss with your student as you both prepare for Move-in Day.

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Summer Homework for College Parents

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You have a new college student headed to school for the first time in late August or September.  You may be feeling relieved that the college search and application process is over, but also a bit anxious about what may lie ahead.  Your student is busily connecting with new friends on Facebook and saying goodbye to old friends at home.  In between, your student may be shopping for cool dorm room furnishings and possibly even reading an assigned summer book.

You may wonder what you should or could be doing this summer to stay involved while letting your student take the lead for the college process.  Here is a short list to get you started.  Spend some time this summer getting familiar with your student’s school, and also having some important conversations with your student.  Let your student take the lead, but be armed with some information and ideas just in case you’re needed.

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Summer Before College a Summer of Decisions: Financial Decisions

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This is the third of three posts about decisions new college students may face during the summer before freshman year. As a college parent, you can help your student consider some of these important issues.(Read the post about academic decisions here, and the post about student life decisions here.) This post looks at some financial decisions students may face.

Your student has been accepted to college and made the choice of which college to attend.  You’ve paid the deposit and your student is now happily, if somewhat nervously, connecting with new friends on Facebook as they prepare to head off to college at the end of the summer.  You may be feeling relief that the decisions are over and you can all settle in for the ride.

It may not be that easy.  The summer before freshman year of college is still a time of many decisions for both you and your soon-to-be college student.  Some of the decisions will be easy, some may have been discussed previously, and some may take you by surprise.

It is natural for both you and your student to feel somewhat overwhelmed by the number of things that you need to think about and prepare during this busy summer. But starting now, and making some decisions early, will help both you and your student feel more in control of this transition process. We hope that you and your student will think about some of these issues — and follow the links for further reading.

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Summer Before College a Summer of Decisions: Student Life Decisions

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This is the second of three posts about decisions new college students may face during the summer before freshman year.  As a college parent, you can help your student consider some of these important issues.(Read the post about academic decisions here.)  This post looks at some student life decisions students may face.  The final post will discuss student financial decisions.

Your student’s been accepted to college and made the choice of which college to attend.  You’ve paid the deposit and your student is now happily, if somewhat nervously, connecting with new friends on Facebook as she prepares to head off to college at the end of the summer.  You may be feeling relief that the decisions are over and you can all settle in for the ride.

It may not be that easy.  The summer before freshman year of college is still a time of many decisions for both you and your soon-to-be college student.  Some of the decisions will be easy, some may have been discussed previously, and some may take you by surprise.  Being prepared for making some of these decisions will help both you and your student anticipate some issues that might arise.

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